Ubin Sunday

Over e wkend (20-21oct)

Sat: Superlate wakeup call, Visited organic farm, Hari-raya party@ BnB's
Sun: Ubin mt'biking, yaris shower, Soup-plc dinner n Whirling dervish concert


A pic of Pling & i at Checkjava's viewing tower platform.. on e boardwalk we saw lots of seagrass n cute "1-arm crabs".. i guess e starfish n seacucumbers req some wading n prodding fr e muddy mangrove flats. (Photo, thks Kevin!)


Simon was really kind to lookout for our bikes while we went for e walkabout. A very charming restored tudor-colonial hse is now e visitor centre. A cafe wif ice-lemon tea n scones .. e 1 missing link to make e plc even more memorable ;P

views fr e ground in johor..

i'd been interviewing ppl for an admin post in jb, n one of e comments i came across was all e person wished of e govt was, provision of a place where it is safe to live&move around & economic creation of jobs (that pay a reasonable salary). In e state, general security (& police governance) as well as work opportunities are 2key issues.
There is a whole sector of locals who are in need of a decent job.

This week, Catherine Lim's (a famous writer) sister died from e blow of a hammer from group of motorbiker snatch-thieves. Most residents of johor worry of thefts, break-in to their homes and being hurt/killed in a robbery.

The townships are often hot n concretised, with rubbish over-flowing in e back alleys (& sometimes right along e main streets).. garbage-collection is erratic & infrequent, with collection intervals between 3days to over a week!
It saddens me to see e beautiful place marred by a lack of organisation & basic municipal support.

Que to figure-out:
How to shake up e sluggishness & transform mindsets?
Things to address:
1. job opportunities
2. safety
3. municipal provisions

There are pockets of folks who are really putting something in to make a better difference, but overall, its been a flop. So.... there you go, opportunities to make things right! :) From an optimistic point.

Music fr e Middle of Nowhere

Today, overheard on bbc.. snippets of music & interview of "prairie" musicians.

It was really beautiful, e tunes, e views of e musicians who tour across u.s & canada. During a long trip, friendships r forged, great music is made, n rural folks out there get entertained.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/programmes/close_up.shtml

Hmm.. time to check out e music of KD Lang!

BBC Interview : Humanrights activist

While driving to work, i happen'd to tune in to bbc-fm at e causeway.
an interview with an humanrights person was on air.. & here r some snippets i found very insightful:

1. r u constantly in fear of ur safety & life?
answer : no, other more powerful emotions r present..

2. at night, do u wake up in fear of your life?
answer : not really, usually if i wake up, its a feeling of sadness for not having been able to do something enough. of course, it is not that i dont have fear, there are some moments i feel afraid.

3. with your involvement with humanrights, are you able to lead a normal life like anyone else, or does your work color your life ?
answer: inevitably, it colors my life, definitely. however, i m also a mother & wife, which is also an important role for me.

Wow... my respect & salutation to this lady.

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(fight for humanrights in a certain part of russia, where e militia has little regards for these rights. an account, of a youngman who was detained by militia. his mum & family waited outside e walls of e detention barracks, with pleas for his release. Finally after abt a week, e guard came by n said, u can go check e yard, there r 2 fresh bodies. But it was not e body of e son. The mum never saw e son again. Many similar cases go unreported & it is the awareness & rights which the activists take upon/tackle for e unrepresented in their society)
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Fri breakfast

Fri bfast at e nearby prata plc..

Pre-flight champagne & a silver phantom

My Bro toasting with a glass of Moet champagne & dinner prior to e start at Hogswart ;) (Uni. endeavours)

The phantom, a silver flash in e sunlight... i help to take care of e bike, n ride it too! Somehow fate associates me with bikes la..

*(photo to be posted)*

To all my friends, yeah from my era ;) who has met my bro as a small kid.. yup yup.. amazing how much he has grown.

Cookie's Day Out

Event: SKC Dog's outing & BBQ - 29oct07, Sat 5-10pm @ Ecp.
Activities: Games & BBQ, Cost/person: $12, Freebies: Doggie treats n shampoo.


2weeks earlier, Mel sms'd abt a SKC (spore kennel club) Bbq at East coast park. That would be a great outing for Cookie e Spaniel! Sure.. n i'll do e chaffeur wif e Yaris :)

Preparation of e Pet Taxi was simple enough, drapped 2 large bedsheets on e backseat n covered as much as possible. Cookie, surprisingly came leaping into e car (1st time taking Yaris) & was very well-behaved. He actually enjoyed looking out of e window at e passing scenes, all e while looking so cute. Only once, he barked.. not sure at what, perhaps a bird or crane, oh boy, that was quite distracting. ;)

Nice weather n breeze by e beach. A short dip into e waves & shower. He was overly eager over e food & got tied to a pole away fr e picnic mat.
BBQ menu: Otah, chicken wings, mee goreng, fried rice, sweetcorn, wrapped fish, tofu-bakar, choc moouse, fruit-jelly, orangedrink.
Vince munched on bbq-chicken, sweetcorn n yam potato. Mel & i binged on meegoreng n more. After dinner, we socialised with e other dogs & owners, among them were a greyhound, american spaniel & gentle retriever. Cookie happily got his share of lambchop & treats. At some point, there was a few strange growls from Cookie, mysteriously either over lambchop-bone or UFO.?! The lights of e ships twinkled in e horizon, planes headed by to/fro changi, nice moment in spore, e seabreeze n company.. woof! ;)

Going back, at e carpark, Cookie sniffed at a whole row of cars (causing some 'shock' to a few couples) , and finally figured out e correct car! Smart Cookie,...haha but after checking out so many cars!